Cascade parsley fern facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cascade parsley fern |
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| Cryptogramma cascadensis on a rock wall near Frozen Lake on Mount Rainier, Washington, USA | |
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| Genus: |
Cryptogramma
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| Species: |
cascadensis
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The Cryptogramma cascadensis is a type of fern often called the Cascade parsley fern or Cascade rockbrake. It's a small plant that grows in rocky mountain areas.
About the Cascade Parsley Fern
This fern is special because it likes to live in tough, rocky places. It's found in the mountains of western North America. Like all ferns, it doesn't have flowers or seeds. Instead, it reproduces using tiny spores.
What it Looks Like
The Cascade parsley fern grows in a small clump. It has an underground stem called a rhizome that helps it spread. This fern has two different kinds of leaves:
- Sterile leaves: These leaves are flat and have small, oval or diamond-shaped parts. They don't make spores.
- Fertile leaves: These leaves are longer and thinner, almost like fingers. Their edges curl under to protect tiny cases called sporangia. These sporangia hold the fern's spores.
How Scientists Named It
For a long time, scientists thought the Cascade parsley fern was the same as another fern, Cryptogramma acrostichoides. But in 1989, a scientist named Ed Alverson studied it closely. He realized it was different enough to be its own unique species.
The first official sample of this fern, called the type specimen, was found growing on a rocky slope. This slope was below Chair Peak, about 5 kilometers (3 miles) northwest of Snoqualmie Pass.
Where it Grows
This fern is native to western North America. You can find it from British Columbia in Canada, south through Montana, and all the way to California in the United States.
It loves to grow in the cracks and small spaces of mountain slopes. These slopes are often covered in loose rocks, known as talus. The Cascade parsley fern especially likes moist areas high up in the mountains, in what's called the subalpine zone. It often grows on volcanic or granite rocks.
